GHQ attacker, TTP terrorists can be sent to gallows
Amir Mir
Monday, July 21, 2014
From Print Edition
ISLAMABAD: Under mounting pressure from the security agencies to lift the moratorium on death penalty in the cases of dreaded terrorists and hardened criminals, the federal government may allow carrying out the death sentences.
Likely to be hanged first are Aqeel alias Dr Usman, a soldier-turned-jehadi and the ring leader of the 2009 fidayeen attack on the GHQ building, and several other TTP terrorists, already handed down death sentences.
According to well-informed government sources in Islamabad, since the launching of the operation Zarb-e-Azb in North Waziristan, the security establishment had been pressing the federal government hard not only to legislate new laws to tighten the prosecution of dreaded terrorists but also to lift the moratorium on death penalty which is in force since 2008.
Because of the moratorium, over 8,000 criminals, including terrorists, target killers, murderers and those involved in other heinous crimes, have not been executed for the last six years. The federal government had subsequently passed the Protection of Pakistan Act (PPA) 2014 immediately after the launch of the operation Zarb-e-Azb in on the recommendation of the khaki top brass.
The government sources said that in their July 17 meeting at the GHQ, Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and Army Chief General Raheel Sharif had discussed in detail the issue of effectively prosecuting terrorists in the courts as well as dealing with those terrorists who had been handed down sentences but are not getting convictions, thus leaving a negative impact on efforts of the armed forces in the war against terror.
Both the PM and the COAS were unanimous that the terrorists should be given a tough message that they will not be spared for their misdeeds come what may once they are arrested. Thus, the government circles say, there is a strong possibility of the prime minister revoking moratorium on death penalty as far as the cases of dreaded terrorists and hardened criminals are concerned.
The moratorium on death sentence was invoked by the Zardari-led PPP government on the pressure of international community.Subsequently, some 8,000 convicted prisoners continue to defy death despite the fact that they have already exhausted their judicial appeals and their convictions have been endorsed by the Supreme Court of Pakistan.
When the Sharif government came into power, it had announced to resume the death penalty but soon got it reversed. However, repeated warnings by the Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) that the executions of jailed militants including Aqeel alias Dr Usman would compel the TTP to wage a war against the PML-N leadership finally forced the government to take a U-turn on its previous declaration.
It was in August 2013 that Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif had ordered to halt carrying out of the death sentences in the country till further orders. The decision came hardly a few days after the ameer of the Punjabi Taliban, Asmatullh Muavia, warned that the executions of the TTP men would compel the Taliban to wage a war against the PML-N.
His warning was followed by yet another threatening statement released by the TTP spokesman, Ehsanullah Ehsan, saying that a highly-trained squad of suicide bombers has been formed to target two key figures of the PML-N (most likely Nawaz Sharif and Shahbaz Sharif) if Aqeel alias Dr Usman was hanged in Faisalabad jail as per schedule on August 23 [2013].
“The residences of prominent PML-N leadership will be attacked immediately if Aqeel is sent to the gallows as per schedule. The leadership of the PML-N will be our target, just like we had targeted the ANP leadership,” the TTP spokesman had warned.
Interestingly, however, before taking the U-turn on death sentences, Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan had stated on August 14 in Islamabad that the new government was determined to establish the writ of law. “There is a huge backlog of 450 cases of death sentences and we are processing them as fast as we can to implement the execution orders of the hardened terrorists so that the law may take its due course,” he had said.
On his part, Federal Information Minister Pervaiz Rasheed was quoted by the national press as saying on August 15 that the death sentences had been awarded by courts and not the PML-N. He said that the courts were rightly displeased with dragging feet on hanging the criminals, who have been sentenced and who have exhausted the right of appeal long time ago.
Against the backdrop of the reports about their imminent executions, the Taliban had warned through a pamphlet distributed in South and North Waziristan on August 14: “If the jailed prisoners are executed, it would amount to a declaration of war on the part of the government”.
Aqeel was set to be executed in Faisalabad on August 23, 2013 but he was lucky to have survived in the wake of Sharif government’s decision to impose moratorium on death penalty.
A deserter from the Medical Corps of the Pakistan Army who later joined the Taliban ranks, Aqeel was sentenced to death in August 2011 by a Field General Court Martial (FGCM) in Rawalpindi for his role in the GHQ attack. Three civilians - Khaliqur Rehman, Mohammad Usman and Wajid Mehmood - were awarded life sentences while two others, Mohammad Adnan and Tahir Shafiq, handed down eight and seven years jail sentences respectively.
While Aqeel was caught alive following the assault, another ex-soldier and five civilians were arrested later and were found guilty of abetment in the brazen attack. The court martial proceedings against the accused were headed by a serving brigadier and the trial lasted over five months at an undisclosed location near the garrison town of Rawalpindi.
But Aqeel’s fate was effectively sealed on December 7, 2012 when an Army Appellate Court headed by a major general had rejected his appeal against the death sentence. As Aqeel attempted to challenge his sentence in the superior courts, he was told that the verdicts handed down by the military courts cannot be challenged in a high court. As per the confessional statement of Aqeel, he had deserted the Army’s Medical Corps in 2006 to join the Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM). He later joined hands with Commander Ilyas Kashmiri’s Harkatul Jehadul Islami (HuJI), finally becoming a significant leader of the Waziristan-based Punjabi Taliban. In the aftermath of 2007 Lal Masjid operation, Aqeel and some other hardcore jehadi elements floated a new group - Tehrik-e-Taliban Punjab – which had carried out the GHQ attack.
As such, the GHQ assault was one of the first major terrorist attacks attributed to the Punjabi Taliban. Aqeel had disclosed during interrogations that the GHQ attack was conceived in the Miramshah headquarter of North Waziristan by the same militants who had attacked the Sri Lankan cricket team’s bus in Lahore in March 2009.
Shortly after the attack on the Sri Lankan cricket team, Aqeel fled to Waziristan where he had met al-Qaeda-linked Ilyas Kashmiri. It was at this meeting that the idea of the attack on the General Headquarters was finalised by Ilyas Kashmiri, who himself had deserted the Special Services Group (SSG) of the Army to become a key al-Qaeda leader, before being killed in a US drone attack in June 2011.
Implementation of death penalty may be resumed soon - thenews.com.pk
Amir Mir
Monday, July 21, 2014
From Print Edition
ISLAMABAD: Under mounting pressure from the security agencies to lift the moratorium on death penalty in the cases of dreaded terrorists and hardened criminals, the federal government may allow carrying out the death sentences.
Likely to be hanged first are Aqeel alias Dr Usman, a soldier-turned-jehadi and the ring leader of the 2009 fidayeen attack on the GHQ building, and several other TTP terrorists, already handed down death sentences.
According to well-informed government sources in Islamabad, since the launching of the operation Zarb-e-Azb in North Waziristan, the security establishment had been pressing the federal government hard not only to legislate new laws to tighten the prosecution of dreaded terrorists but also to lift the moratorium on death penalty which is in force since 2008.
Because of the moratorium, over 8,000 criminals, including terrorists, target killers, murderers and those involved in other heinous crimes, have not been executed for the last six years. The federal government had subsequently passed the Protection of Pakistan Act (PPA) 2014 immediately after the launch of the operation Zarb-e-Azb in on the recommendation of the khaki top brass.
The government sources said that in their July 17 meeting at the GHQ, Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and Army Chief General Raheel Sharif had discussed in detail the issue of effectively prosecuting terrorists in the courts as well as dealing with those terrorists who had been handed down sentences but are not getting convictions, thus leaving a negative impact on efforts of the armed forces in the war against terror.
Both the PM and the COAS were unanimous that the terrorists should be given a tough message that they will not be spared for their misdeeds come what may once they are arrested. Thus, the government circles say, there is a strong possibility of the prime minister revoking moratorium on death penalty as far as the cases of dreaded terrorists and hardened criminals are concerned.
The moratorium on death sentence was invoked by the Zardari-led PPP government on the pressure of international community.Subsequently, some 8,000 convicted prisoners continue to defy death despite the fact that they have already exhausted their judicial appeals and their convictions have been endorsed by the Supreme Court of Pakistan.
When the Sharif government came into power, it had announced to resume the death penalty but soon got it reversed. However, repeated warnings by the Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) that the executions of jailed militants including Aqeel alias Dr Usman would compel the TTP to wage a war against the PML-N leadership finally forced the government to take a U-turn on its previous declaration.
It was in August 2013 that Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif had ordered to halt carrying out of the death sentences in the country till further orders. The decision came hardly a few days after the ameer of the Punjabi Taliban, Asmatullh Muavia, warned that the executions of the TTP men would compel the Taliban to wage a war against the PML-N.
His warning was followed by yet another threatening statement released by the TTP spokesman, Ehsanullah Ehsan, saying that a highly-trained squad of suicide bombers has been formed to target two key figures of the PML-N (most likely Nawaz Sharif and Shahbaz Sharif) if Aqeel alias Dr Usman was hanged in Faisalabad jail as per schedule on August 23 [2013].
“The residences of prominent PML-N leadership will be attacked immediately if Aqeel is sent to the gallows as per schedule. The leadership of the PML-N will be our target, just like we had targeted the ANP leadership,” the TTP spokesman had warned.
Interestingly, however, before taking the U-turn on death sentences, Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan had stated on August 14 in Islamabad that the new government was determined to establish the writ of law. “There is a huge backlog of 450 cases of death sentences and we are processing them as fast as we can to implement the execution orders of the hardened terrorists so that the law may take its due course,” he had said.
On his part, Federal Information Minister Pervaiz Rasheed was quoted by the national press as saying on August 15 that the death sentences had been awarded by courts and not the PML-N. He said that the courts were rightly displeased with dragging feet on hanging the criminals, who have been sentenced and who have exhausted the right of appeal long time ago.
Against the backdrop of the reports about their imminent executions, the Taliban had warned through a pamphlet distributed in South and North Waziristan on August 14: “If the jailed prisoners are executed, it would amount to a declaration of war on the part of the government”.
Aqeel was set to be executed in Faisalabad on August 23, 2013 but he was lucky to have survived in the wake of Sharif government’s decision to impose moratorium on death penalty.
A deserter from the Medical Corps of the Pakistan Army who later joined the Taliban ranks, Aqeel was sentenced to death in August 2011 by a Field General Court Martial (FGCM) in Rawalpindi for his role in the GHQ attack. Three civilians - Khaliqur Rehman, Mohammad Usman and Wajid Mehmood - were awarded life sentences while two others, Mohammad Adnan and Tahir Shafiq, handed down eight and seven years jail sentences respectively.
While Aqeel was caught alive following the assault, another ex-soldier and five civilians were arrested later and were found guilty of abetment in the brazen attack. The court martial proceedings against the accused were headed by a serving brigadier and the trial lasted over five months at an undisclosed location near the garrison town of Rawalpindi.
But Aqeel’s fate was effectively sealed on December 7, 2012 when an Army Appellate Court headed by a major general had rejected his appeal against the death sentence. As Aqeel attempted to challenge his sentence in the superior courts, he was told that the verdicts handed down by the military courts cannot be challenged in a high court. As per the confessional statement of Aqeel, he had deserted the Army’s Medical Corps in 2006 to join the Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM). He later joined hands with Commander Ilyas Kashmiri’s Harkatul Jehadul Islami (HuJI), finally becoming a significant leader of the Waziristan-based Punjabi Taliban. In the aftermath of 2007 Lal Masjid operation, Aqeel and some other hardcore jehadi elements floated a new group - Tehrik-e-Taliban Punjab – which had carried out the GHQ attack.
As such, the GHQ assault was one of the first major terrorist attacks attributed to the Punjabi Taliban. Aqeel had disclosed during interrogations that the GHQ attack was conceived in the Miramshah headquarter of North Waziristan by the same militants who had attacked the Sri Lankan cricket team’s bus in Lahore in March 2009.
Shortly after the attack on the Sri Lankan cricket team, Aqeel fled to Waziristan where he had met al-Qaeda-linked Ilyas Kashmiri. It was at this meeting that the idea of the attack on the General Headquarters was finalised by Ilyas Kashmiri, who himself had deserted the Special Services Group (SSG) of the Army to become a key al-Qaeda leader, before being killed in a US drone attack in June 2011.
Implementation of death penalty may be resumed soon - thenews.com.pk
